We're Not From Here
by The Lady Avaritia
Summary: In the brainstoning hot summer, seven people reflect on unlived childhoods, and inner children, and their humor is sweet like pink cotton candy, and bitter with sea salt.


**Title: we're not from here**

**Rating: **T  
><strong>Spoilers: <strong>general

**Characters**: Anko, Tsunade, Shizune, Izumo, Kotetsu, Kakashi, Gai…  
><strong>Summary: In the brainstoning hot summer, seven people reflect on unlived childhoods, and inner children, and their humor is sweet like pink cotton candy, and bitter with sea salt.<strong>

**Disclaimer: **disclaimed

**Author Note:** I really wanted to write that. It's easily one of my best works! I hope you like!

**Author: **_Lady Avaritia_

The hot summer air hung dry and heavy over the academy training grounds. It scraped over throats and lungs like sandpaper, and it tasted like low-quality cotton. The sun glared down like a giant fireball eye. Nobody seemed particularly interested in training in the murderous heat.

Kakashi was sprawled on a thick low tree branch with one of his Icha Icha books. His obsession had, by then, become the butt of thousands of jokes.

Shikamaru was sleeping under said tree, a grass strand poking from the corner of his mouth. Anko had put her trench coat on the grass, like a picnic blanket, and was currently lying on it, munching on a piece of dango. Kurenai had managed to butt in, and was resting her head on the dango-obsessed kunoichi's stomach. Kotetsu and Izumo had taken similar positions on the opposite sides of a tree, and fallen asleep standing.

Tsunade herself, was laying under said tree, bottle of sake in hand. Shizune was sitting close to the Hokage's head, and a stack of paperwork was neatly folded beside her.

In the smashing heat of the summer, nobody was interested in doing any work at all.

Tsunade had set up her office outside, while the air conditioning in the Hokage tower was being fixed. All the people present in the make-shift office right now were supposed to be doing something. Only Shizune was, but everyone was promptly ignoring her death glares and silent complaints.

As if anyone would want to get up and do work!

'Come on, come on, you will dream your lives away! Get up and fin the power of youth!' the well familiar yell of Gai broke through the lethargically trance of the group. Tsunade's eyebrow twitched.

'It's hot, you moron!' she hissed sounding disturbingly like her once-teammate Orochimaru. Someone would've probably noted on it, if they didn't all agree with her.

'Once you bathe in the fountain of youth, nothing can harm you!' the Green Beast declared and struck a pose.

'I'm going to quote my knowledgeable teacher, the great snake sannin Orochimaru,' Anko declared dramatically, 'Quote: 'The Fountain of Youth has cracked and gone dry long ago for you, disgusting spandexoid' end quote! Hear this and know, Orochimaru sensei was rarely wrong about anything!'

'Do you really think so?' Gai asked eyes wide, 'That Fountain is dry?' his eyes were getting teary.

'Yes!' Anko said and shot him down with a death glare.

'Nooooo!' Gai sobbed. He clutched his head and fell heavily on his knees.

'Gai-sensei!' Lee appeared out of nowhere, 'She is not right!'

A lovely sunset appeared behind them, and they were suddenly standing on some rocks by the sea, with waves crashing around them.

'We carry the Fountain of Youth in our hearts! It's a part of us!' Lee said passionately.

Ultimate Tears of Manly Joy were running down both their faces, and the waves crashed around, sending salty drops of water around.

'Oh, this is nice,' Kurenai said, 'I love the sea. Can you keep it longer?'

but the Sunset of Youth disappeared just as randomly as it had appeared, as the two Green Beasts/Disgusting Spandexoids went to run laps around the village.

Anko had, in the meantime, gone over to the swing. She poked the rope tentatively, and then sat down. She did a few test swings, and then started swinging, her legs in the air.

'What are you doing, Anko?' Tsunade demanded half-heartedly.

'The air current is making it cooler,' Anko explained. 'Besides,' she added with a childish grin, 'it's fun to discover your inner child sometimes, Tsunade-sama!'

the blonde lady scoffed.

'I know damn well where my inner child is, I don't need to discover it!' she declared.

'And where is it, if I may ask?' Kakashi peered from above his book.

'On the lunch line, waiting for your inner child to beat it up, and steal its lunch money,' she retorted.

'Crude,' Kotetsu and Izumo grinned at the same time.

'I don't think I have an inner child, Tsunade-sama,' Kakashi said. 'Perhaps chibi-you should focus elsewhere.'

'What do you mean, no inner child? Everyone has an inner child!' Kurenai protested, and continued 'I, for example, am rather fond of white sundresses, pink cotton candy and ballet flats.'

'I rather like cotton candy as well…' Shizune mused.

'Not pink though,' Kotetsu arched an eyebrow.

'No,' Shizune shook her head, 'Just plain white.'

'Aww,' Izumo said, 'I was hoping we could win you over with pink cotton-candy!'

'I suppose,' Shikamaru began, and then paused, 'I suppose y'all have those so-called 'inner-children' 'cause you didn't really get a descent childhood. I'm guessin' Kakashi has an inner child too…it's just deeper than yours. 'cause he was never a kid, really, if ya know what I mean.' And then the shadow user promptly fell asleep again.

'He could be right, for all I know,' Kakashi said, and returned to his porn book.

'Maybe that's Kakashi's inner child,' Anko guessed. 'You know, porn books.'

'What?'

'Well, since he was never a normal kid, he just grew up all of a sudden. He was never a child, or a teenager. So maybe his Icha Icha obsession is his inner teenager demanding attention…or something,' she finished doubtfully.

'It makes sense, in a very creepy twisted sense, actually,' Kuremai said. 'What's your inner child, anyway, Anko-san?'

'A messed up kid, really,' Kotetsu said.

'Oi!' Izumo yelled when Anko's dango stick hit him square in the nose.

'My inner child like swings,' Anko declared with a happy smile. 'And also fishing. And dango, of course!'

'Orochimaru taught you how to fish, and bought you your first dango stick, I remember,' Tsunade said with a nostalgic smile.

'My inner child,' Anko's face became serious then, and her smile turned a little sad in the corners, 'My inner child is also in love with Orochimaru-sensei.'

Tsunade nodded thoughtfully.

'My inner child,' she mused, 'I guess my inner child misses him a little too. But my inner child is also obsessed with clothes and shoes, and has a flat chest!'

everyone laughed at that.

'We don't have inner children,' Izumo and Kotetsu announced in unison.

'That's probably because you act like children anyway!' Shizune said.

'What does your inner child like hen? Aside from cotton candy?'

Shizune blushed a little.

'Books, I guess. Books, and silk kimonos.'

Then everyone lapsed in a comfortable silence, thinking about their inner children, and the things those children could've doe if they had been allowed to exist.

Kurenai though of dancing in the rain in a white sundress and ballet flats.

Anko thought of fishing with her Orochimaru-sensei.

Shizune thought of the pretty silk kimonos she'd seen on rich civilian women and how much she wanted to won one.

Tsunade thought of high-heeled shoes, and her once-flat chest and Orochimaru.

Kakashi thought of how much he'd missed on life after becoming chuunin at six.

Kotetsu and Izumo though of people with no childhood memories, and their minds flared back on one Itachi Uchiha who always passed the playground on his way to the training area, with a longing look in his eyes.

And then the bell rang, and Konoha's future, the academy students burst through the doors, laughing, yelling over each other.

And Tsunade smiled a little, because this new generation was a free one. These children didn't need to create artificial childhoods for themselves in between A-rank mission. They were allowed to live a little longer as people, and a little less as shinobi.

'Oi, snake-lady! Get off the swing; you're too old to sit there!'

'Am not! The fountain of my youth is overflowing!'

Another magical sunset appeared as Anko struck a pose.


End file.
